Women In The Victorian Era Essay, Research Paper

In the Victorian Era (1832-1901), women faced many challenges. Women were not treated as they are today. They were treated unfairly and not heard. There was a need for women to express their own needs as human beings, and finally overcome their hardship. But the question remained, what was their position in life? Two pieces of literature that deal with this topic are A Dolls House by Henrik Ibsen and A Woman s Thoughts about Women by Dinah Maria Mulock.

The book A Doll s House (1879) by Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906) is a play that portrays how women acted and were treated. It is a story of a woman (Nora) that takes charge and borrows money for her sick husband without telling him. When her Husband (Torvald) finds out, he gets upset because he thinks his role in life is threatened. The author uses descriptive imagery to portray the need for Nora to express her needs as a human being. In the book, Torvald has pet names for Nora such as squirrel, skylark, and little girl. This gives you an idea of what the relationship between Nora and Torvald is.

Another passage that represents women in the Victorian Era is A Woman s Thoughts about Women by Dinah Maria Mulock (1858). It talks about a momentous question. She says that men are the ones that do the dirty work, and women just kill time. The womans role is to kill time, never doing anything of importance. This momentous question is What is a women to do with her life? The author puts the passage in a womens point of view to help you better understand the role of women. She also uses the personification of time . She describes time getting stabbed and killed as if it were a living thing. Using these literary elements she helps us better understand the roles of women in the Victorian Era.

The Victorian Era was a hard time for women. They were not listened to and they were treated unfairly. They were supposed to do only what they were expected to do and nothing else. These two authors using literary elements make us better understand the role of women in the Victorian Era.